Peek inside Wollongong's oldest house, the grand dame Keera Vale

The current owners Jenny Dixon and Harold Cosier are proud the Georgian house is finally looking "lovely" again and to celebrate the restoration works thus far will welcome hundreds of strangers into their home at the weekend.

The National Trust tours of the Bukari Street home have all sold out, but the Mercury took a tour prior to share what the couple has done to bring the 178-year-old house back to life.

"We're really proud of the outside because it now, from the street, looks like it should have and it hasnt for over 100 years," Mr Cosier said.

The pair have spent every spare moment of the last decade - and dollar - on restoration works with Mr Cosier doing much of it himself.

The primary school principal picked up his handy skills from growing up on a farm near Wellington, in the state's Central West, and even built a mud-brick house in the 1980's.

Although still unfinished, Mr Cosier believes Keera Vale is "looking how she should" with his proudest moment to date installing new balconies around the outside, capitalising on sweeping views of Mount Keira and the escarpment.

"It was so magnificent and so satisfying that finally she looked to be a grand old dame," he said.

"She looks lovely again instead of a giant toilet block."

The family has slow chipped away at the concrete render on the outside, which didn't allow the building to breathe; they've used razor blades to carefully scrape off modern interior paints; stripped back heavily painted cedar doors and windows; reinstated fireplaces, doors and windows where they should be; and are beginning work on installing an Australian cedar staircase.

There has also been a lot of engineering work after the walls started moving.

Ms Dixon said hundreds of thousands of dollars have gone into their beloved home over the years, though the National Trust did contribute a grant towards the $150,000 needed for the verandah.

Many more years of hard work and many more dollars will be needed to complete the restoration, which makes Ms Dixon a little nervous ahead of the open day.

But the old gal is looking very grand from the outside, and history buffs are likely to look past what's unfinished and enjoy eyeing off the original timber floors, ceiling roses, door frames, french doors and chandeliers.

When Ms Dixon and Mr Cosier purchased the home it was in a sorry state having been remodeled into three appartments with only external access between floors.

The pair conducted extensive research to work out how the house should actually look and found it was built in 1843 for Judge Roger Therry, a barrister from County Cork who was attorney-general, but never managed to actually live in it.

Over the years many advertisements were found from the Illawarra Mercury or Sydney Morning Herald adveritising the elegant home on the hill for sale or for lease.

In 1848 "the Illawarra Seminary for Young Ladies" operated by a Mrs Wardlow was advertised as occupying the "elegant mansion of the Honourable Mr Therry".

In 1852 the property was titled to John Stewart - a vet, magistrate, politician and writer for the Mercury - with he and his family living there until 1866.

In 1872 Russell Blacket ran a private boys school at the address.

In 1887 Keera Vale transfers ownership to Michael Carberry who died two years later, though survived by his wife who continued on at the property.

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Ms Dixon found photos from 1916 of "Henry and Leah Stone" and their grown children standing outside Keera Vale, thought to have rented or owned the property.

In 1932 the property is titled to Arthur Curry, who was married to Anne Stone, daughter or Henry and Leah Stone.

Ms Dixon's research found multiple families rented sections of Keera Vale in upstairs/downstairs arrangements.

It then went through a few different owners, before Jose Peres remodelled the house into three appartments in 1967.

This transformation is where Ms Dixon believes the the original fireplaces were removed along with the internal staircase and the cedar mantles, the ballroom doorways and doors partially bricked up and removed.

During the 1980's and '90s, Mr Cosier said it was known around town as "haunted house" with young people keen to show an "act of bravado would come in and explore".

"If we have ghosts here, they are happy with what we are doing," Mr Cosier said, noting his family had never seen any paranormal activity.

"But we have had visitors that have told us they've seen a little girl ... and she sits in front of our fire and looks at the flames according to a couple of visitors, and there's also been a gentleman seen in our stairwell."

The girl is thought to be the ghost of John Stewarts four-year-old daughter Casmi Adelf, who died on the property in 1860.

If any history buffs can shed more light on the history of Keera Vale, they can get in touch with the owners through their Facebook page: www.facebook.com/davidmacreadykeeravale

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